Nobody was surprised when Alabama, Florida State, Ohio State and Oregon were named as the four participants for the inaugural college football playoff in 2015 with the SEC, ACC, Big Ten and Pac-12 all represented. And while lots of Big 12 fans come crying as TCU and Baylor, who ranked third and sixth in the country at the time, were left out of the equation, it’s the smaller schools that are feeling deprived.
There was hardly any debate last season about a non-power conference school even getting a whiff of the BCS playoff, which seems to be stacked in favor of the power conferences. Is that going to change this time around? Here are four potential Cinderella teams that could push for a playoff spot if everything goes their way.
Boise State Broncos
Mountain West
The Mountain West darlings are no strangers to Cinderella runs and that could help them as they try and make a case to play in the college football playoff. Boise State has been in some big games before and the fact that they won three Fiesta Bowls is testament to their ability to thrive under the bright lights. A 12-0 record plus a victory in the Mountain West title game could have fans calling for the Broncos to be given an opportunity and while their non-conference schedule isn’t as difficult as some of the other contenders from non-power conferences, they certainly have the talent and reputation to be a sleeper pick to make the college football playoff.
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BYU Cougars
Independent
BYU might not play in a power conference but the teams that do consider them one of the top non-conference opponents on their schedule. That will boost their credibility if they can deliver this season. The Cougars schedule includes games against Nebraska, Boise State, UCLA, Michigan, Cincinnati, Missouri and Utah State and if they win those seven games en route to a 12-0 record, they will be hard to keep out of the playoff. BYU has won a national championship before, so the pedigree is there. If they capitalize on the opportunity then college football fans will be calling out for them to get one of the four spots.
Utah State
Mountain West
The Aggies are a team that has maintained a high level of success with 30 wins combined over the last three seasons and the Mountain West certainly has some credibility with Boise State already mentioned on this list. There will never be an 11-1 Cinderella team from a non-power conference, so Utah State will have to run the table. If they can go 12-0, it would have to include wins over Utah, Washington and BYU and that could be enough to get in. The Aggies have the talent to make some serious noise in the Mountain West this season and assuming Chuckie Keeton stays healthy, they are a decent sleeper pick.
Central Florida Knights
American Athletic
Some have argued in favor of a team like Western Michigan but the odds aren’t in their favor. Although the AAC is still a BCS conference, it’s the forgotten stepchild, so we’ll go with a more realistic team selection for this list even though it’s still a fringe conference.
Central Florida makes this list because they’re a team that has a favorable schedule in the American Athletic. UCF would have to beat both Stanford and South Carolina on the road to go undefeated but that isn’t an impossibility. Just a couple of years ago (in 2013), they managed to post a 12-1 schedule with a grueling 28-25 loss to SC as their only blemish. Central Florida will also have to deal with Houston and Cincinnati within its own conference but if it can find a way to at least split the nasty road games, it could be enough for them to make it in to the college football playoff from a non-power conference.
